Mother reported for letting daughter walk dog alone

By Jo Abi|

'It was really scary'

A US mum is fighting back after being reported to Child Services for letting her daughter walk the family dog alone.

Corey Widen allowed her daughter Dorothy, eight, to walk the family pet, Marshmallow, around their Chicago neighbourhood in an attempt to teach her "independence and responsibility."

Instead, Widen found herself the subject of an investigation by local police and child services after neighbours reported her.

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During an appearance on Good Morning America, Widen explained that she could see Dorothy out of her front window for most of the walk and doesn't feel she did anything wrong.

The neighbour who raised the alarm with police reportedly thought the girl was as young as five before making the call.

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Local police chief Kyle Murphy told The Washington Post that after meeting with the family, he determined there had been "no wrongdoing" on the mother's part.

However, both Dorothy and her mother were frightened by the investigation.

"It was, like, really scary," the eight-year-old told Good Morning America. "I saw the police just there, like the police's car and I heard the, like, sirens going off."

While the police wrapped up their investigation quickly, the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services took longer, approximately two weeks.

The mother says she was simply trying to teach her child responsibility. (Good Morning America/ABC)

They eventually closed the case due to a lack of "any evidence of negligence or wrongdoing."

Widen feels the entire situation was uncalled for.

"The initial call was for an unattended five-year old," she told ABC News. "I don't think it should have made it past the hotline that a little girl walking her dog needs to be investigated."

She said people need to avoid judging "a book by its cover."

"You don't know every situation, you don't know every child," the Chicago mum added. "When you do things like this, you overwhelm an already overwhelmed system with nuisance calls like this, and kids and families who really need help don't get it then."



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